Zeynep Özden, born in Istanbul in 2006, began her piano education at the age of six with Toygar Tezcan. In June 2014, she passed the entrance exams of Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University (MSGSÜ) Istanbul State Conservatory and continued her part-time piano studies with Prof. Ayça Aytuğ. In 2016, she successfully passed the full-time piano department exams of MSGSÜ and became a full-time student. Since then, she has participated in various programs and competitions both in Türkiye and abroad, and has performed in numerous concerts.
In June 2016, she was awarded third prize at the 5th Stockholm International Piano Competition in Sweden, and in December of the same year, she also received third prize at the 1st Bursa Nilüfer Piano Competition. In 2017, she won second prize at the 12th International Pera Piano Competition, and the first prize at the 7th International Milano Piano Talents Competition.
She has attended masterclasses given by Prof. Tamara Poddubnaya, Prof. Aldo Ragone, Prof. Eser Bilgeman Şakir, Prof. Emmanuel Mercier, and Mauricio Vallina in 2016, 2017, and 2018. In 2017, she was accepted into the Bodrum Gümüşlük Festival Academy and successfully completed masterclasses with State Artist Gülsin Onay, Ilya Itin, Romano Pallotini, and Mauricio Vallina, who is considered one of the most intriguing pianists of his generation.
In December 2017, she passed the soloist audition held by MSGSÜ and performed as a solo pianist with the MSGSÜ Youth Orchestra in their 2018 concerts. On 24–25 March 2018, she was a guest musician at the 4th Piano and Music Days organized by Açı Music and Art School. From 14 to 24 August 2018, she attended the Warsaw Piano Workshop in Poland and took part in masterclasses with Prof. Joanna Marchinkowska, Prof. Alberto Bertino, and Prof. Tomasz Lupa.
In 2019, she won first prize at the 5th Tadini International Music Competition in Italy. That same year, she attended masterclasses with Prof. Gereon Kleiner, Emre Şen, İbrahim Yazıcı, Assoc. Prof. Gökhan Aybulus, and Prof. Marcus Becker. In 2020, she received second prizes at the Online Piano Competition for Youth in Europe, held in Germany, and at the Belgrade International Music Competition in Serbia.
In March 2020, Özden gave her first solo recital at Moda All Saints Church. In 2021, she participated in masterclasses with MA Fernando Viani and Prof. Fedele Antonicelli. In 2022, she worked and recorded with piano virtuoso Emre Şen, known in music circles as “Emre Chopin.” In 2022, she began preparing to continue her high school music education in the UK. She was accepted into all four of the UK’s most prestigious music schools to which she applied. After successfully passing the piano, solfège, and language exams of each school, she received full scholarships with boarding offers. From the 2022–23 academic year onwards, she decided to continue her education with a 95% scholarship at The Yehudi Menuhin School, studying under Prof. Dinara Klinton. During this time, she attended masterclasses by artists such as Kathryn Stott, Andreas Frölich, and Wu Qian, and received harpsichord lessons from Carole Cerasi and Mahan Esfahani.
In addition to her solo performances, the pianist has also taken part in many chamber music projects and concerts, performing major works such as Rachmaninoff’s Piano Suites, Saint-Saëns’ Carnival of the Animals, Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Suite (arranged for two pianos), Milhaud’s Scaramouche Suite, and many others.
In November and December 2024, she auditioned for six conservatories and was accepted into all of them: the Royal College of Music, Royal Academy of Music, Guildhall School of Music and Drama, Royal Northern College of Music, Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, and Royal Birmingham Conservatoire. She has decided to continue her education at the Guildhall School of Music with a scholarship starting in September 2025.
